Broken Core, the final Link Joker's promise
by Rolann
Summary: It was the end of the invasion. His troops were shattered. His will and beliefs started to fade to nothingness when he met Riviere. When he was found by the Aqua Force, when he started to "feel". Until that one last promise, until he met the "Champion". Follow Argon in his final hours on Cray as he struggles with his own conscience. -ObscurationS EDIT: A sequel is on its way!


So this story is about an "unlocked" Link Joker, a member of the invaders who was tainted by "Unlock", the power which eliminated the Void inside all beings.

How would a soldier of the LJ react to this change? Will he try to protect the memories of his true self? Or will he crumble beneath this formidable power?

* * *

It was a dark and stormy night. Two soldiers who had opposed ideals fought a mortal battle on the highest mountain of Kagero.

"It's about time you go back to where you came! We, Kagero cannot bear your presence!"

"... Never. This is a fight to death. I am not letting things end like this."

The unknown Link Joker unit pulled out his final weapon, a double-barrelled gun, imbued with the power of Void and pointed it at the only standing dragon who dared to oppose his advance.

"Lock."

He fired once at his enemy, hoping to end the battle in that one strike, gambling everything in that final move.

"!?"

The Void fired out by his gun was repelled by an aura which suddenly emanated from the dragon he faced.

"I am Seal Dragon Georgette. One who will unlock the hearts of the Dragon Empire's soldiers. I will inspire them to fight back."

"What is this power?!"

As the aura grew redder, the atmosphere around Georgette started to become hotter than magma.

"This is my final move. UN-LOCK!"

One huge flame geyser burst from the ground, incinerating the invader. His armour was burned to crisp, but he stood back up again. His parts and joints became nearly useless after that attack, but his will remained intact.

"No... I cannot let things end like this... We must CONQUER ALL OF CRAY!"

"Yet you will fade away in nothingness. Just like your comrades. You were never meant to be here from the very beginning. It's over, face it." Georgette solemnly declared.

"NO! IT'S NOT! I WILL NOT STOP THE INVASION YET! MY CO-WORKERS ARE COMING! SOON, THIS PLACE SHALL BE DOOMED!

"Sorry, but by co-workers... Did you mean Nebula Lord and his army?"

"!? How did you...?"

"Too bad. Ezel already took care of him. Now it is my turn to take care of you."

"YOU PEST!"

"UN-LOCK!"

The mighty Link Joker's body was sent flying by a second flame geyser and fell into a water current. The war was over. Not even a single trace of him was left.

On that night, the invaders were repelled by the Cray natives. Years of campaigns and war had finally come to an end.

The invasion was over.

* * *

It was a bright morning in an island close to the Bermuda and Aqua Force frontiers. Top Idol Riviere swam up the streams and sat alone under the sunshine. It was relaxing. After years of war, she could finally find peace.

Her gaze went around until she saw an odd-looking plant. Riviere was curious, and so, she went to see.

The idol took a closer look and realized that it was a mechanical leg. She gasped.

"W-what!? A Nova Grappler brawler fell into the sea!?"

She quickly tried to pull that unit out.

What came out indeed resembled to a mechanical leg. However, it was not a Nova Grappler's. What emerged from the rock had a face which could give nightmares to Cray's inhabitants. Everyone knew that kind of face and body structure.

"A-a Link Joker!?"

Riviere's shriek resonated in the Link Joker's sound reception system and so, it started up the wake-up process.

A cybernetic voice started cackling.

"Ke-ke-keh..."

"Wha-"

The idol held her mouth in surprise and perhaps, despair.

But it was too late to realize it: the waking process has already started.

The member of the invader's army slowly, but surely rose from the dust covering him and finally started to breathe mechanically.

Riviere fell to the ground, paralysed by fear.

"Ah... It's... It's... YOU'RE A-" she could barely utter the name of that cursed clan.

"... A being... of Cray...? Riviere... from Magallanica's Bermuda Triangle..."

The cybernetic being sat on a rock and looked at the mermaid.

"Kill me." he said, in a grave voice.

"Huh!? But! But!"

"No buts. My mission here... is over. I have no purpose of living anymore. Now kill me, young mermaid. And become the glorious slayer of the last of my kind on this planet."

"I don't want to!"

"DO IT!"

"Why wouldn't you do it yourself then!?"

The Link Joker stopped. He couldn't drown. But he could definitely tear apart his own systems. But was reluctant in doing it.

"... Are you... afraid?" Riviere said.

"I do not know what that means, mermaid. We, Link Jokers are designed to not feel anything."

"Then...!"

"I don't know... Something is holding me back... Something beyond my own knowledge..."

"Then live! Live as one of us! Live as an immigrant, just like the Dimension Police!"

"I refuse. Your kind disgusts me, mermaid. I cannot cohabit with you people." the Link Joker shook his head.

"But!"

"No buts. Kill me now. Or be killed by me."

"I won't kill you!" Riviere replied with courage.

"Then die."

The Link Joker, with a swift stance, grabbed a dagger on his waist, the only weapon left to him, and stabbed it towards his would-be victim.

"EEEK!"

And he stopped his killing gesture suddenly.

Holes started to open in his wounds and the black ring's messenger started to howl in pain.

His stern, metallic face would've been twisted by suffering.

His core sent him a pulse which resonated throughout his whole body, warning him about the impending system shut down.

"AAAAGH" he yelled.

"Uhm... What? Are you alright?! Oh dear, what should I do!"

An idea came up. She actually knew what to do in these situations. She had done it many, many times in the past few months.

Riviere sang a song. A song she used to soothe the broken souls during the war. A song so calm, it made hope rise for those who had lost it.

Instantly, the Link Joker's core calmed down. It was at peace. It was as if it responded to Riviere's music.

The mechanical holes also stopped growing bigger.

"... What did you do... to me..." he grumbled, trying to sit up.

"All I did was singing a song. A song which used to calm broken souls. To give them peace." Riviere replied with a sincere smile.

"... Why would it work on me?"

"Well, it worked on everyone. So why not you?"

The black-ring's envoy looked at the Bermuda Triangle's idol.

"Impossible. Are you suggesting that I have become like you...? Beings of Cray?" the Link Joker was desperately trying to reach for his knife.

"W-what are you even talking abo-"

"So... Has this become my ultimate punishment? Had Georgette deliberately kill off my true self...?" his tone suddenly changed.

"You can live with us! You can cohabit with us! There are always better options than killing yourself!"

"I cannot fathom it. I CANNOT FATHOM IT. I CANNOT FATHOM IT!" the Link Joker unit placed his hands on his face, as he fell on his back after putting much efforts into even trying to rise up.

In the middle of his wailing, a gunshot could be heard.

"LINK JOKER! STOP RIGHT THERE! WE HAVE FOUND YOU!"

The remaining invader turned around. He recognized that tone. It was Pavroth of the Aqua Force, accompanied by many of his comrades, including Erikk.

"... Aqua Force. You have come at the right time." he said, looking at the navy officer.

"A-Aqua Force? But this is Bermuda Triangle's territory!"

"Shut your mouth, Riviere. This isn't about us nor you. This is about international security. It is about Cray's security. That is why we are going to take this cyberoid in custody.

"B-but I found him first!"

"... You are but an idol. Nothing more. We, soldiers of the Aqua Force do a better job in these situations. Now scram."

"I have already lost the war. I don't need to remain alive in this world anymore."

Pavroth stared at him.

"Haha, you clearly don't know what's in for you, eh Link Joker?"

"...Huh?"

"We are commissioned to bring you back to our headquarters and give you a final judgement. A judgement from our Vice-Admiral, Maelstrom."

"What's the difference between annihilating me right now and annihilating me later? I cannot understand. Time is the only thing that separates an earlier demise and a later demise."

"We are going to take out every kind of information we can get from you before killing you off like a worthless insect." Pavroth said with a dark smirk.

Riviere widened her eyes.

"W-what are you planning to do with him!? Look, he already lost everything that was dear to him!"

She knew it. Aqua Force was probably planning to take him prisoner and maybe even torture him in order to squeeze out extra info.

"Ha, what laugh. Even if you torture me, I won't respond. We, Link Jokers do not feel anything, unlike you, minor beings."

Hearing that, Pavroth and his whole crew laughed. An arrogant laughter resonated from that beach.

"Oh, we know everything. Georgette told us already. He told us that a lone Link Joker may have survived from his attacks. He asked the Aqua Force to bring justice upon him. And of course... He told us that you have lost everything that makes you a Link Joker."

"Don't make me laugh, inferior being."

"I am only telling the truth. Georgette unlocked you. He assured me that you are no longer protected by your former blessings. You are no longer influenced by Void's power, resulting in your cybernetic body to further resemble to that of a Cyborg rather than that of a lifeless machine."

"LIES. ALL LIES!" the Link Joker shook his head. "I AM A LINK JOKER! I AM THE INVADER WHO MAKES ALL OF CRAY'S BEINGS COWER IN FEAR!"

The poor being was still trying to recover from his wounds when that simple fact started to give him doubts about his own identity, pinning him down once more.

Pavroth smiled sarcastically.

"Not anymore. Troops, capture him. As for you Erikk, please get missy there out of the way."

"Hey!" Riviere was dismayed.

"Sorry, miss Riviere, but this is something beyond my power. I need to obey Pavroth because he is my superior." a petit Aquaroid blocked Riviere with a single hand.

"But him!"

"Don't worry, we'll dispose of him as soon as we're done questioning him." Erikk said with a grim expression.

* * *

Pieces of the remnant armor the black commander bore continuously fell.

"Get out of my sight insolent fool. You are not worthy of even speaking to me."

"TELL ME! TELL ME YOUR NAME!"

The pommel of a sword was rammed into the Link Joker's stomach for his arrogance.

"GAAAAAH!"

The Link Joker couldn't believe it. Every single time that wretched Aqua Force man hit him, he was struck with an awful load of pulses from his core which made him more... vulnerable to revealing answers.

"... My name... Argon... From the Star-Vaders."

The torturer stopped hitting him for once.

"Finally had a taste of pain eh? This pain is what you gave to all of us, Cray's natives!"

"I do not know what you are talking about."

This time, the torturer slammed his elbow unto the same spot he was hitting for hours.

"AGHH!"

"This is pain. Believe it or not, you will go through lots of it during the next few days."

"..."

Argon shivered for the first time since his creation. Him? A mighty Link Joker's commander disgraced to this point? Unbelievable!

Then, another thought hit him.

He was no Link Joker anymore. He had nothing in common with his former self, except maybe for his sinister appearance.

He had lost everything. His co-workers. His army. His kind. And even lost himself in this war.

He was nothing. Absolutely nothing at all anymore.

For days, he was hit, dragged around and tortured.

And he thought, if that was the feeling of being a "Cray native", then most of the people who were still alive should have more than just courage to live.

His "miserable life" just began, according to Pavroth, who had the "gentleness" to pay him a visit from time to time.

He was... He didn't want to go back to see the light anymore. He didn't want to get insulted again. He especially didn't want that torturer to come back with his huge sword.

He was afraid.

For the first time since his creation, the Link Joker received feelings, feelings he didn't want to face anymore.

For the first time since his creation, he was left alone. Alone in a cell in which he barely fitted in. Alone in the dark.

For weeks, he was tortured, yelled at and insulted by the people of Aqua Force.

Was there no end to all of this?

In the forgotten black alley, there he was, restrained by dozens of chains.

He could hear something coming from his sensors. He could hear the sea.

A small stream of water slipped by from a hole of this horrid, centuries old prison.

Argon stared at it. He saw his own appearance reflected.

His current appearance? No. That couldn't be his current one. In the one reflected by the small stream, he looked like his former general self. His former glorious self.

And he heard a voice. No, a song more precisely. His beating core started to calm down as he became more and more infatuated with the voice.

"... Maybe I am nothing more than a being of Cray as of now... Maybe I will remain like this forever... Maybe I should stop thinking about everything that happened in the past... Maybe I should move on..."

He then violently shook his head.

What? Did he seriously think about giving up his memories? Did he seriously thought about giving in to torture and this... gentle... no, tempting music?

"I am Stainless Star-Vader, Argon, and I shall remain as him until the very end."

His wounds suddenly seemed like nothing. He "felt" as if he was able to conquer the whole Aqua Force by himself.

"Yes... I am Argon..." he muttered.

Suddenly, light shot in as the cell's door opened.

A man dressed in officer's cape unlocked him from his chains, but first had to lock up his hands and legs.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"We are going to give you the final judgement. Be honored. You shall be executed by Revonn."

Days of beating had finally come to an end, he thought. Finally. He could rest. In peace.

... In peace? When did that idea even come to his mind? No, no, no, he told himself. I don't want peace. I want to be who I really am. I want to stay true to myself. I am Argon of the Star-Vaders.

As he walked with the badged officer, he stared at the sun. The sun he failed to annihilate The sun he failed to darken.

Loads of insults and trash talk could be heard from the sidelines as he got closer to his destination.

"Where is this?"

"This is the Colosseum. The Aqua Force's Colosseum, where fighters challenge each others in a test of wits and skills."

"What am I supposed to do there? Am I not going to get executed?"

"You are. Maelstrom pronounced your sentence already. You are to be slain in daylight by our Champion."

Once he entered the Colosseum, the Link Joker was pushed into a room where he found rusty armor and weapons.

"... What are they planning to do?" he thought as he wore the out-of-date equipments.

He picked up a sword which looked closest to the one he used to bear and bravely stepped into the great arena where the crowd was nearly going wild.

The Champion was already there, waiting in his prestigious blue armor.

"REVONN! REVONN! REVONN!"

The crowd was cheering for the executor.

The black commander stared at the huge ring he was in.

A round, old-fashioned ring, just like those he had seen in another distant planet.

Drawing out his new weapon, the Link Joker awaited for Revonn to charge at him.

The blue Champion took out his twin swords and diced a huge rock at his right with ease, effectively showing how well maintained they were.

"So you are their Champion..."

"..."

Revonn said nothing to the pile of trash in front of him. He did not deserve to be even spoken with.

And then, with an extraordinary footwork, he charged at Argon, pointing his sword's sharpe edge to end the fight swiftly.

The Link Joker, with an inhuman effort, dodged it by twisting his upper body.

But it wasn't over yet. Revonn had two swords, so his second one came slashing at his elbow.

Argon, with all his might, used his rusty sword and parried the hit, merely deviating the slash's trajectory.

Revonn was maybe skilled a fighter, but he was more than that. Back when he was a commander in the Link Joker's vanguard troops, his near perfect skills were feared by his opponents, which gave him the surname "Stainless".

"Fool. You cannot beat me, even in a thousand years. My swordsmanship towers above all living beings." he said, pointing his sword at Revonn..

For moment there, he felt like before. Before the war that changed him. Before he became just like a resident of Cray. He was... himself again. Invincible, unrivalled.

Revonn furiously spun around himself in attempt to dice his enemy to pieces, but his swords were blocked by the Link Joker's old weapon.

Alas, the gear difference was too immense. The old blade broke to pieces, shattered by the blue twin swords.

Argon was left with no weapon, open to all kinds of attacks.

"FINISH HIM! GO, REVONN!" Everyone wanted Revonn to end it with one strike.

But it was not the case.

Revonn grumbled something incomprehensible and lunged towards Argon, pushing him and making him crash to the ground. The blue-winged soldier then took one of his swords and impaled Argon's first hand, keeping it stuck on ground.

"YEAAAAAH! END IT! END IT! END IT! END IT! END IT!"

Revonn looked at the Link Joker with a prideful look.

He was finally going to eradicate this horrid being from the surface of Cray. Might as well enjoy it a bit.

He kicked the black commander and stomped at his stomach, causing most of the rusty armor to break.

He then took his second sword and impaled Argon's second hand.

"AAAARGH!"

Rain fell as he continuously got tortured, continuously got punched, continuously got kicked.

He couldn't feel anything except pain anymore.

And at some point, a single shining drop of rain fell on him. To be precise, it looked more like a shining tear.

Flailing around uselessly, Argon was dying. He was dying for real this time. His core started to beat at a slower pace, slowing down every single second.

And he thought about it. Eternal slumber...

The tear streamed down, until it reached his sensors, his "ears", and a melody started to play in his head.

A soothing voice could be heard, a calming voice only used by Riviere to cure the weak and broken souls.

As if reacting in conjunction to the tone, his core went back to its normal state and beat faster.

His might recovered. His will started to come back.

No. He wanted to keep on conquering. The mission he failed was suddenly reborn in his mind.

His core started to beat faster as he nearly felt nothing from Revonn's strikes anymore.

With the strength of a titan, he ignored the pain from the swords which pinned down his hands and sat up.

Revonn was surprised. After so many beatings, this trash could still stand up?

He pulled out one of the swords and tried to behead the Link Joker.

The merciless blade was however stopped by the Link Joker's hand.

"A HAND? A SIMPLE HAND?!"

The black soldier, with a firm grip, pulled Revonn towards him and headbutted the Champion, launching him a few meters away.

A storm started to rise, but most of the Aquaroids did not mind it, as they were designed to be waterproof.

"I AM NOT GOING TO BE DESTROYED YET!"

The Link Joker yelled in the thundering weather.

"I HAVE STILL MUCH TO DO! MUCH TO CONQUER! I AM STAINLESS STAR-VADER, ARGON!"

He pulled out the remaining sword from his hand with what power he had left and threw it away.

Both combatants were now weaponless and only had their fists.

Revonn stood back up and with a furious gesture, he proceeded to try to swing his arm and pin the Link Joker down.

However, with an unexpected speed, the Link Joker firmly gripped his hand and, as the pieces he was made of crumbled from his broken parts, did an uppercut, sending the Aqua Force flying.

But it wasn't over yet. He couldn't run anymore, but he still had enough to walk, so he marched his way to where the blue-winged soldier landed.

His armor parts slowly slid off, but he kept advancing.

For the first time in this excruciatingly long journey, he felt like defending his true identity: a Link Joker commander.

Revonn did what he could to stand up, but the strikes were so unexpectedly strong that he could barely even hold his own ground.

The crowd yelled. It was pained.

"MAELSTROM! VICE-ADMIRAL! COME SAVE OUR CHAMPION!"

But the dragon did not move and kept standing on the Colosseum border, seemingly shocked about how the event turned out to become.

"LISTEN TO ME, CHILDREN OF THE SEA!" Argon roared, as the parts he was made of kept chipping away, a single piece at a time.

"I AM LINK JOKER'S LAST ENVOY! I AM DIFFERENT FROM ALL OF YOU! TODAY, I SPARE YOUR CHAMPION! TOMORROW, I SHALL NOT BE THERE ANYMORE! BUT ONE DAY... ONE DAY I SHALL RETURN!"

Everyone shuddered. Was this mad cyberoid for real?

The black commander picked up one of Revonn's blue swords who sat on the ground for a long time, waiting to be looted.

"I WILL RETURN ESPECIALLY TO DEFEAT YOU, REVONN!" he threw the blade at Revonn, purposely to make it miss the blue being by a few inches. "UNTIL THEN, MAY YOU ALL SUFFER FROM DEFEAT AND HUMILIATION AT MY HANDS!" he yelled at the public, as the box protecting his core started to open up.

And as he raged on, parts of him kept being washed away.

The wind finally carried his remainders as was freed at last.

The one named Argon disappeared from the surface of Cray, leaving the crowd and his nemesis bitter with anger and hatred, rage which could not be quenched, as he was not part of Cray anymore.

Until the end, he remained a Link Joker. Until the end, he kept on fighting and he did conquer something, to say the least. The feelings of the one he swept aside in the Colosseum, as well as the feelings of those who supported this Champion. He was able to show them the extent of his power until the end. He was able to make the Cray natives cower and despair until the end.

He did not "live". He simply was...

* * *

It was a bright morning in an island close to the Bermuda and Aqua Force frontiers. Top Idol Riviere swam up the streams and sat alone under the sunshine. It was relaxing. After years of war, she could finally find peace.

Her gaze went around until she saw an odd-looking mushroom. Riviere was curious, and so, she went to see.

The idol took a closer look and realized that it was a box. A box containing... a beating core... No, not a core...

A beating "heart" of pride, that was what it must be, she thought.

She smiled and sang a song. A song which breathed a new life into this old, broken heart.


End file.
